Does Blue Clash with Camel?

The thing about camels is that they have a hump. And the thing about the hump is that it makes sitting on the camel rather awkward. And the thing about the awkward sitting is that it's combined with just-as-awkward walking and trotting. And the thing about the awkward walking and trotting is that you have to endure it for 6 hours a day. And the thing about enduring it for 6 hours a day, for 2 days is that it makes your ass and thighs really, really, really sore.

My camel was named Lalu. Lalu was tall, curly, had one hump, two nose piercings, a sagging lillypad lip, cute fuzzy ears, quadruple-jointed legs, wore a bell and was generally very camelesque. Lalu was a well behaved, quite, leader who liked to snack on shrubs. We got along well.

Our camel safari into the Great Thar Desert started off with a jeep ride out to the desert's edge (or so we thought) and an introduction to our 3 guides (ages 26, 15 and 8!) and camels. We quickly saddled up with water and food and plodded out into the unknown with two other Danish girls and a French guy (who turned out to be great company). The day consisted of visiting some villages where the average age was about 5 and eating lunch under a tree for a few hours while the camels hobbled around with their legs tied together. More plodding, fly-swatting, and sweating in the hot hot heat went on after lunch and as there was a lot of time to just sit and contemplate, numerous questions when through my head.

Who invented the lassi?

Do dung beetles only eat dung?

What happens when a camel steps on a desert melon?

When night fell we enjoyed a campfire, chai and fresh chapatis. The evenings entertainment consisted of songs similar to the Lion Kinks track 1: "naaaaaaa cheven-yaaaaa, na na heeee-sheeeeee mo mo" and a bucket drum. After some apres camel sand-yoga and dung beetle punting we retired under the stars. I was glad to have the protection of a sleeping bag as it not only kept me warm from the cold desert wind but also kept the beetles out - others were not so lucky.

Another ass-beating day on camel back went by. I got a wicked sunglasses tan, ripped pants, and an entirely different view of "the camel". We arrived back in Jaisalmer and tried to get the sand out of everything.

The next day was spent doing what we do best: wandering and shopping. We checked out the old and still lived in Palace/Fort, bought some camel leather shoes, watched some kids play cricket, drank chai, bought more shoes/pants/bracelets etc, and tried to become shopkeepers for the day which didn't pan out so well.

We now will continue our Rajastan rumble in Jodhpur (the Blue City) then to Udaipur to join Liz Hurley and her new bo at their wedding (which Elton and the Beckhams will be attending) ... we hope they don't mind a surprise drop in.